Congressional Committees

Did You Know?

Bottom line: Congressional committees play an important role for a bill to become a law.

Prior to consideration of a bill, both the House of Representatives and the Senate evaluate and debate the bill in a small group of Members known as a committee. In addition, committees conduct hearings on bills to allow Members of Congress and the public to hear from selected parties about the bill’s strengths and weaknesses. Through these committees, Members of Congress become subject matter experts on topics they oversee, enabling them to fully evaluate relevant information and make legislative recommendations to the full House or Senate.